"I do 100 things wrong"— When Shark Tank's Robert Herjavec opened up about making mistakes

Shark Tank investor Robert Herjavec has made a name for himself in the business world, coming from an immigrant family and working hard to establish a successful career.

Over the years, he has made his share of mistakes and faced numerous failures. However, he has never shied away from discussing them, openly sharing the valuable lessons he has learned along the way.

In an interview with CNBC Make It, published on May 10, 2016, Robert shared his thoughts on making mistakes. He mentioned that, on average, he makes hundreds of mistakes every day but emphasized that errors are part of the learning process.

“I would say that on an average day, I do 100 things wrong. I try not to make mistakes that’ll kill me or the business,” the Shark Tank investor said.

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Shark Tank investor Robert Herjavec reflects on his past and the importance of learning from mistakes

When Robert Herjavec was eight years old, he and his family lived in Yugoslavia. Despite their modest lifestyle, Robert never realized they were poor, as their neighbors lived under similar conditions.

At the time, Yugoslavia was a communist country, and his father held strong anti-communist views. Seeking a better future, the family decided to leave. Their initial goal was to move to America, but they were denied entry, they found refuge in Canada instead.

Living in Canada was a whole new world for his family. Robert's father worked as a factory laborer, while his mother became a receptionist. Meanwhile, Robert's classmates used to make fun of him for being poor and ridiculed him for wearing the same clothes.

Reflecting on his past in an interview with CNBC Make It, the Shark Tank investor shared that he struggled to adjust to his new country at such an early age.

Regardless, his father taught him never to complain, emphasizing that no one is entitled to an easy life and that everyone has the opportunity to create their own successful life through hard work.

“You’re going to get knocked down. You just got to get up again and you got to keep going because at the end of the day, success is your responsibility, and so is failure,” he said.

Robert added that while struggling is normal, entrepreneurs should never give up. Sometimes, he noted, hitting rock bottom is necessary before bouncing back up.

“Sometimes you got to go really low. Sometimes you got to hit bottom before you can bounce back up. Fundamentally, what other choice do you have? We weren’t put here to wallow in our own misery,” he said.

The Shark Tank star admitted that he makes a lot of mistakes. However, rather than dwelling on them, he believes people should focus on the things they did wrong, work on them, and learn from their experiences.

He further stressed the importance of learning from mistakes while letting go of the past, as no one truly cares about what went wrong—only about what comes next.

“Learn from them and then most importantly, forget about them. It doesn’t matter. Whatever you did wrong yesterday, nobody cares. Don’t complain because nobody cares. Get over it. Move on. Do better. Take care of the ones you love,” the Shark Tank star said.

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Shark Tank season 16 episodes air every Friday on ABC.